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District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis’ letter clearing McCarthy in the shooting is dated April 19 and was sent to Police Chief Bill Lansdowne. Her office made the letter public Monday at the request of U-T San Diego.

According to the letter, McCarthy spotted Ortega leaving the area and began to chase him while ordering him to stop. Ortega ran into a confined breezeway at an apartment complex, where he engaged McCarthy in a fight.

During the struggle, McCarthy’s backup weapon became dislodged and fell onto the ground about two feet away from Ortega’s head, the letter said.

The officer managed to get Ortega’s hands behind his back and cuff his left hand, the letter said, but Ortega continued to struggle and eventually reached for and touched the revolver.

McCarthy pushed the gun away and drew his service pistol, pointing it at Ortega who continued to fight with the officer as they faced each other, the letter said. Ortega then used both hands to reach for McCarthy’s service weapon, and the officer responded by firing twice at Ortega.

The officer told investigators that Ortega’s hands were about a foot away from the gun, and that he believed he was trying to grab the gun in order to kill him with it.

McCarthy radioed that shots were fired, handcuffed Ortega’s right hand behind his back and began performing CPR until he was relieved by another officer.

The district attorney’s investigation concluded that McCarthy was within his rights to fire upon Ortega, who was hit in the abdomen and in the back of the neck. He died at the scene.

“Based on the totality of the circumstances and evidence available, we find it reasonable to conclude that Officer McCarthy fired at Mr. Ortega while attempting to arrest Ortega and in self-defense. Therefore, Officer McCarthy bears no criminal liability for his actions,” the letter said.

At the time, McCarthy had been on the force for less than three years. He has since returned to patrol, a police spokesman said.